The Government of Canada Announces Agreements with Saskatchewan on Official Languages in Education
OTTAWA, April 5, 2001 -- Minister of Canadian Heritage Sheila Copps today announced the signing of two agreements with Saskatchewan promoting minority official-language education and second official-language education.The agreement includes a three-year action plan, from 2000-2001 to 2002-2003. It stipulates that the Government of Canada will provide $9,854,000 over three years to the Government of Saskatchewan. The contribution from the Government of Saskatchewan will be more than $39 million over three years.
Both parties approved a second agreement, The Canada - Saskatchewan Special Agreement on Investment Measures for Quality Education in the Language of the Minority, that will support a francophone school governance development plan. This agreement includes a four-year action plan, from 2000-2001 to 2003-2004. It stipulates that the Government of Canada will provide $8,100,000 over four years to the Government of Saskatchewan. The contribution of the Government of Saskatchewan will be more than $10 million over four years.
"The linguistic duality that characterizes us is profoundly rooted in the heart and soul of this country," said Minister Copps. "This new investment demonstrates the Government of Canada's commitment to promoting the growth of both linguistic communities. Our partnership with the Government of Saskatchewan today marks a new step in this direction. The development of multi-year action plans will provide greater transparency in the management of funds from the Official Languages in Education Program."
The action plan approach is an innovation in the area of official languages in education.It demonstrates the willingness on the part of both levels of government to better inform the public on measures taken and the results achieved. Thanks to this new approach, a long tradition in the area of official languages will continue in a more efficient framework, focused more on results and better information to the public. The public and more specifically the community groups interested are invited to consult these plans and follow their implementation.
The financial contributions of the Governments of Canada and Saskatchewan provided for in these agreements will allow more than 1 000 young people from minority communities in all regions of the Saskatchewan to study in their language in more than 12 elementary and secondary schools. Moreover, thanks to these funds, more than 93 000 young people will be able to learn their second official language, 9 300 of them in immersion classes.
The Department of Canadian Heritage's financial contribution to these agreements is provided under the Official Languages in Education Program. Funding for these agreements was provided for in the February 2000 federal budget and is therefore built into the existing fiscal framework.
The Government of Saskatchewan's action plan is available for public consultation at : Cabinet Secretariat, Legislative Building, 2405 Legislative Drive, Room 32 Regina, Saskatchewan S4S 0B3
Information:
Krista Pawley
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister
of Canadian Heritage
(819) 997-7788
Office of the Minister of Education
of Saskatchewan
(306) 787-7360
BACKGROUNDER
SUPPORT FOR MINORITY-LANGUAGE EDUCATION AND SECOND-LANGUAGE EDUCATION
On March 2, 1999, the Minister of Canadian Heritage announced an increase of $70 million in the budget of the official languages support programs. Of this amount, $30 million were added to the Official Languages in Education Program (OLEP), thereby boosting funding for the program from $152 million to $182 million per year.
The OLEP was created in 1970. It allows the Government of Canada to help provincial and territorial governments to cover part of the supplemental costs incurred for minority-language education (English in Quebec and French elsewhere in the country) and for English and French education as a second language.
The OLEP is controlled by a multilateral protocol concluded in February 2000 between the Government of Canada and the Council of Minister of Education (Canada) (CMEC) and by bilateral agreements with each province and territory. The Protocol of Agreement for minority-language education and second-language instruction is for five years, from 1998-1999 to 2002-2003. Since the renewal of the Protocol, provisional agreements have ensured financial aid for the fiscal years 1998-1999 and 1999-2000.
The signing of the present agreement opens the way to a new form of collaboration between the Canadian government and the provincial and territorial governments. For the first time, the agreements include three-year action plans specifying the objectives of each provincial or territorial government in matters of official-language education, the activities that will be implemented and the expected results.
The action plans developed by the provincial and territorial governments are made public the moment each bilateral agreement is signed. The governments will publish an annual activity report, which will also be made public. This planning will make it possible to ensure the public is better informed and a greater participation by education stakeholders in debates regarding the future of official-language education in Canada.
Collaboration between both levels of government, within the framework of OLEP, allows more than 260,000 young people from official minority-language communities to study in their language in more than 1,000 elementary and secondary schools in all regions of the country. OLEP contributes in the financing of a network of 19 Francophone colleges and universities outside Quebec and 8 Anglophone public colleges and universities in Quebec. It is also in part due to this support that 2.7 million young Canadians are learning a second official language, including more than 300,000 in immersion classes.
Support from the Canadian government has helped in making the young generation the most bilingual in the country's history. Canada is today recognized as a world leader in the area of language education.
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